Abstract
The purpose of the present paper is to show the importance of photosynthetic sulfur bacteria, Chromatium sp., as an organic matter producer in Lake Kaiike, a small lake situated on the north coast of Kamikoshiki Island. The lake (surface area : 0.15 km2, maximum depth : 11.6 m) waters are brackish above and very saline below. The deeper part of the saline water contains a remarkable amount of hydrogen sulfide. Water at the O2-H2S boundary contains a dense population of Chromatium sp. The bacteria concentration attains a maximum of 5.3 106 cells/ml, forming the so-called “bacterial plate.” The carbon assimilation rate at the boundary reaches 30-80 % of the total one. A large number of zooplankton such as Brachionus sp. and Tintinnopsis sp. inhabit the water above the bacterial plate. Chromatium sp. appears to have an important role as a food source in supporting the high zooplankton biomass in Lake Kaiike.
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